When speaking about oneself, should Konjunktiv I or Indikativ be used?

Question

I was reading about the use of Konjunktiv I, and read that it is really only used by reporters.

However, this got me thinking, if I were a reporter, and I were talking about something I said, would I still use Konjunktiv I?

For example, if I were to say the following, I know it's true:

Ich sagte, ich sei müde.

Would I say that, or should I have said:

Ich sagte, ich bin müde.

Eugene Seidel · Accepted Answer · 2013-05-30 04:32:18Z

7

The first variant given by you,

Ich sagte, ich sei müde.

sounds a bit stilted but is technically correct.

In spoken language, more typically you would say

Ich sagte: "Ich bin müde".

or some other variant such as

Ich war müde und sagte das auch.

By the way, back when IBM sold personal computers, can you guess how Germans would resolve the acronym IBM?

answered May 30 '13 at 4:32

Eugene Seidel

3,5381 gold badge14 silver badges33 bronze badges

Thank you! :) And no I don't. How did they? – Dustin May 30 '13 at 4:39
'I'ch 'B'in 'M'ude??? – detraveller Jun 1 '13 at 21:59
@detraveller Got it on the first try ;) – Eugene Seidel Jun 1 '13 at 22:14
Personally, I'd rather say something like "Ich sagte [doch], dass ich müde bin" – Tobias Kienzler Jul 8 '13 at 13:00
@TobiasKienzler "Ich sagte doch, dass ich müde bin" drückt Gereiztheit aus darüber, dass einem die Wiederholung abverlangt wird. Ohne "doch" ist es die Erzählung eines bereits vergangenen Zustands. Nun würden einige eine unzulässige Vermischung von Imperfekt und Präsens monieren, andere wiederum den Satz als umgangssprachlich akzeptieren. – Eugene Seidel Jul 8 '13 at 13:20

| Show 1 more comment

1 Answer 1